Fish 'N' Chips
A Monthly Marine Newsletter
January 2005 Issue

Index

From Liz
By Elizabeth M. Lukan 01/24/05

Happy New Year Everyone!

February's Issue: There may or may not be a February issue. There is something big happening here at the Lukan's House so I may not be able to put an issue together and get it published in time. I will try to get it done early, but I'm not making any promises. If you don't hear from me for a while, don't worry, I'll be back as soon as I can.

Website Updates: There have been some big additions to the Fish 'N' Chips Website since the last issue was published.

• The new Fish 'N' Chips Site List is now live. I've been working on adding all the sites from the old list and still have several web pages of listings to go through. Those will be added as soon as I can - it's a very time consuming process. I still don't have a Site Submission form live and that is mostly because I still have plenty of old submissions to still get to. So, if you submitted your site ages ago, the submission hasn't been lost - you'll hear from me sooner or later. The Site List can be found at http://www.marinefiends.com/wsnlinks/ (url updated 03/09/08, originally http://www.marinefiends.com/sitelist/).
• A new Contributors List has been added to the site. This is a listing of links to all those generous enough to contribute articles, photos, etc. to Fish 'N' Chips issues. The Contributors List can be found at http://www.marinefiends.com/contributors.html. These links will also randomly appear on the bottom of the Site List pages. If I've forgotten anyone, please drop me an email (updated 10/12/05). To get your link on this list, please visit http://www.marinefiends.com/submit.html.
• A new page has been added to the site called Voting Sites, Etc. This page will list all the places you can vote for or rate the Fish 'N' Chips Website. There are already a couple on there so please go and click often. The Voting Sites, Etc. page can be found at http://www.marinefiends.com/vote.html.

Visit This Month's Subscriber's Tank Showcase: Gwen Agboat's Critter Photo is this month's Showcase and can be seen at http://www.marinefiends.com/showcases.html.

Tank Showcases Needed: Gwen's submission is the only one I've received in months. So, please submit your tank photos via http://www.marinefiends.com/submittank.html (url dead 03/09/08) or I will be forced to discontinue the showcases.

Tips Needed: Send those tips in folks! I've run out and it's getting harder and harder to find tips I can publish at the last minute. So, no matter how simple your tip might be, send it in. Visit http://www.marinefiends.com/submit.html for submission information.

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Book Recommendations
By International Marine Aquarists Mailing List, 06/02 - 10/04
Edited By Elizabeth M. Lukan, 10/05/04

Aquarium Corals: Selection, Husbandry, and Natural History by Eric Borneman

... A great book! ... - Eirik Mack Eilertsen

... I would recommend Corals by Eric H. Borneman for coral id and care. - Keith Hellyar

This book is an absolute must for the avid book collector, it is certainly on my Christmas list for this year, the reviews and comments are very good. ... buy it quick ... - Shaun Grant

Eric Borneman's book is one of the best books I've come across. At first I was a bit let down as some of the pictures are a bit fuzzy (but in no way as fuzzy AND garish as the pictures in Delbeek and Sprung's The Reef Aquarium 1 & 2! Even the cover of those books look like tasteless postcards, in my humble opinion...), but it has lots and lots of useful information, lots of stuff I haven't seen anywhere else. Buy it! ... - Eirik Mack Eilertsen

Just thought I would let you know, I've just received my hard cover copy of "Aquarium Corals" by Eric H. Borneman. Had a quick look through and it looks brilliant. I will only get down to some serious reading later tonight (rubbing my hand in glee). Interestingly it has been quoted by some on other forums, as been the best book on corals to date (in their opinions). ... Its alot of money, but that's what I said when I ordered Delbeek and Sprung's volume 1&2 (which cost much more) and they where certainly worth every penny. - Andrew Cheary

Its a great book. Its my coral bible. Definitely has the edge over Julian Sprung's equivalent. - Keith Hellyar

You will definitely enjoy this book, I pick it up all the time and re-read a lot of the information, and I always use it to get information on corals before I buy them at the LFS. - Jon Kenyon

... you wont be sorry. It's excellent!! - Andrew Cheary

Best coral book ... I'm using the term "best" to describe a combination of most useful, informative, and cost effective. These are all books I find myself using or referring others to on an almost daily basis. - Tim Hayes

For corals, you can't beat Eric Borneman's "Aquarium Corals." IMO ... absolutely superb book, loads of info - Marc Foord

I second that! Depending on your interests, you might also want to check out Joyce Wilkeron's "Clownfishes." - Eirik Mack Eilertsen

Baensch's Marine Atlas: The Joint Aquarium Care of Invertebrates and Tropical Marine Fishes by Helmut Debelius, Hans A. Baensch, Horst Moosleitner

I've got Julian Sprung's two Reef Aquarium books - the one focuses on hard corals, the other on softies & anemones. Good value for money. Also, as a fish lover, look at Baensch's Marine Atlas Vol I. - Tobie

Book of Coral Propagation, Volume 1: Reef Gardening for Aquarists by Anthony Rosario Calfo

... I strongly recommend purchasing Anthony Calfo's book of coral propagation. It is packed with very good information and is geared toward the Aquarist that wants to go into commercial coral propagation. The author has a great sense of humour and is highly regarded by his peers. It is in a binder format and does not have a lot of pictures but does has 450 pages of first class info. I can't wait for volume 2 - Andrew Cheary

Best propagation book ... I'm using the term "best" to describe a combination of most useful, informative, and cost effective. These are all books I find myself using or referring others to on an almost daily basis. - Tim Hayes

Must agree with the "Best propagation book"... - Andrew Cheary

Clownfishes by Joyce Wilkerson

Best book on raising fish/live foods ... I'm using the term "best" to describe a combination of most useful, informative, and cost effective. These are all books I find myself using or referring others to on an almost daily basis. - Tim Hayes

... Depending on your interests, you might also want to check out Joyce Wilkeron's "Clownfishes." - Eirik Mack Eilertsen

Corals: A Quick Reference Guide by Julian Sprung

... another book worth the price ... - Shaun Grant

I'd recommend Julian Sprung's; Invertebrates a quick reference guide, and the coral book with a similar title. Both book are very good, for beginners, and more experienced aquarists alike. - James Goodchild

Fairy & Rainbow Wrasses And Relatives by Rudie H. Kuiter

... Yes the seahorse one is very good, as is the Wrasse one, but the best of all (IMO) is the Surgeonfish one. I will defiantly get any more books that come out in this series. - Andrew Cheary

A Fascination for Fish: Adventures of an Underwater Pioneer by David Powell

Very interesting read! - James Stapley

How To Raise & Train Your Peppermint Shrimp by April Kirkendoll

Best book on rearing shrimp ... I'm using the term "best" to describe a combination of most useful, informative, and cost effective. These are all books I find myself using or referring others to on an almost daily basis. - Tim Hayes

Invertebrates: A Quick Reference Guide by Julian Sprung and Daniel Ramirez

I'd recommend Julian Sprung's; Invertebrates a quick reference guide, and the coral book with a similar title. Both book are very good, for beginners, and more experienced aquarists alike. - James Goodchild

Marine Fishes: 500+ Essential-To-Know Aquarium Species by Scott W. Michael

Best fish book ... I'm using the term "best" to describe a combination of most useful, informative, and cost effective. These are all books I find myself using or referring others to on an almost daily basis. - Tim Hayes

Marine Reef Aquarium Handbook by Dr. Robert J. Goldstein

If you are looking for a cheap, informative handbook try "Marine Reef Aquarium Handbook" by Dr Robert J. Goldstein. I bought it for 6 UK pounds. Its bang up to date with excellent illustrations. - Keith Hellyar

I strongly concur with this recommendation. I've owned three copies. Lent them out. Never saw them again... - Charles Thomas

The Natural Reef Aquariums by John Tullock

... I recommend ... - Charles Thomas

Good choice. I highly recommend it for advice on setting up and maintaining. Its not so good for fish and invert advice. - Keith Hellyar

I have not seen this book yet, but have yonks ago bought his "Successful Saltwater Aquariums." I liked his style and how easy it was to understand what he was saying. If I'd like to know more about books, I usually read its reviews on the Amazon web site. If it has a high rating, you can bet on it that it's worth it - and this one does. Amazon also gives a look into 27 pages from the book. Does not look bad at all for less than $25! - Tobie Schalkwyk

Best book for newcomers ... I'm using the term "best" to describe a combination of most useful, informative, and cost effective. These are all books I find myself using or referring others to on an almost daily basis. - Tim Hayes

The New Marine Aquarium: Step-By-Step Setup & Stocking Guide by Michael S. Paletta

... I recommend ... - Charles Thomas

The Reef Aquarium Volume One by J. Charles Delbeek and Julian Sprung
The Reef Aquarium Volume Two by Julian Sprung and J. Charles Delbeek

Julian Sprung's two Reef Aquarium books are the best I've seen thus far. The one covers hard corals, the other softies... - Tobie Schalkwyk

I'll only comment on books I personally own. The best being [The Reef Aquarium Volume 1 and Volume 2]. As you can see, these books are getting on the old-ish side, so there may very well be something better by now (although it will take some doing to beat these). Vol 1 covers mainly hard corals, Vol 2 mainly softies plus a bit of an update on Vol 1. - Tobie Schalkwyk

... I have both of Delbeek and Sprung's The Reef Aquarium 1 & 2 and Sprung's Quick ref to Corals book and think that they, (vol 1 & 2) are the best reef books I have ever come across. I also think that the covers are stunning!! It is also interesting to know that Vol 1 & 2 have been the most admired and used reef books by the so called Guru's (Fossa, Goemans, Calfo, Nelson, Shimrik, Borneman etc. etc.) for the last five or six years. - I have read this on the net somewhere, and if you look in most of the modern reef books you will usually find lots of references to The Reef Aquarium 1 & 2... - Andrew Cheary

While the books do have lots of useful info, the images (in my opinion) leave a great deal to be desired. Some of them are fuzzy, whereas others clearly have been retouched in a photo program. The cover of one of the books, for example, is made up by pasting together images of single corals that appear other places in the same book, and the colors appear to be enhanced up to a point where they don't look natural. Kind of like the images at Garf. - Eirik Mack Eilertsen

I've got Julian Sprung's two Reef Aquarium books - the one focuses on hard corals, the other on softies & anemones. Good value for money. Also, as a fish lover, look at Baench's Marine Atlas vol I. - Tobie

Seahorses, Pipefishes and Their Relatives - A Comprehensive Guide to Syngnathiformes by Rudie H. Kuiter

... I've got the seahorse book already, it's really good. ... - James Goodchild

... Yes the seahorse one is very good, as is the Wrasse one, but the best of all (IMO) is the Surgeonfish one. I will defiantly get any more books that come out in this series. - Andrew Cheary

Surgeonfishes, Rabbitfishes & Relatives by Rudie H. Kuiter

... Yes the seahorse one is very good, as is the Wrasse one, but the best of all (IMO) is the Surgeonfish one. I will defiantly get any more books that come out in this series. - Andrew Cheary

Editor's Comments:
The posts that make up this article are the property of the International Marine Aquarists (IMA) Mailing List. Permission to take posts and turn them into articles for Fish 'N' Chips was granted by Hennie Landman and a vote of IMA Members. I corrected spelling and grammar on the posts as well as put them into html and the Fish 'N' Chips format. Obviously, I took some liberties with the posts in order to organize them into an article. I hope I've done the conversations justice.

Visit the IMA Website at https://lists.ru.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/ima (url updated 03/09/08, originally http://listserv.ru.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/ima-l). To subscribe, visit http://lists.ru.ac.za/pipermail/ima/ (url updated 03/09/08, originally http://listserv.ru.ac.za/pipermail/ima-l/).

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Caught In The Net
By Elizabeth M. Lukan 01/24/05

New Stuff Found

Advanced Aquarist's Online Magazine (http://www.advancedaquarist.com/):

• Volume IV, Issue I, January 2005 is now available.

The Marine Conservation Society (http://www.mcsuk.org/) has a petition on their website to urge the UK Government to introduce legislation that provides protection for the marine environment. For more information and to sign the petition, visit http://www.mcsuk.org/MCS_Policy/petition.php (url dead 10/07/05).

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Chips...er...Tips
Tank & Sandbed Moving Tips
Tip Submitted By Mauro Bergamaschi 04/10/02
Article Written By Elizabeth M. Lukan 01/24/05

The following was received in response to the Moving A Tank With Animals article by Judy Shaner that appeared in the October 2001 issue (http://www.marinefiends.com/issues/2001/fnc1001.html#tankmove) and the Moving A Tank With Animals Follow-Up by Reese Oattes and Judy Shaner that appeared in the March 2002 issue (http://www.marinefiends.com/issues/2002/fnc0302.html#tankmove).

I just moved my tank (see Tank Showcase of Feb '02) from Germany to Italy. It took 24 hours in total. I have two tips:

1. Sandbed: Leave it in the tank with one centimeter of water, it travels safe! Just stir it well when you arrive at the destination and then add rocks and the rest of water. It will be extremely cloudy for a couple of hours, but you'll be busy unpacking the fish and corals so not too much worried for the tank look.
2. Water: I carried with me all the "original" water. The only problem was that even though it was in a heated van, it got cold - 15 Celsius. To heat up 400 liters of water quickly use this trick: procure 20 empty plastic 1 liter soft drink bottles, fill them with hot water from the house faucet and drop them in the "cold" tank water. Leave them for 3/4 minutes and repeat it several times. In one hour I managed to reach 27 celsius.

To Submit Your Tip: Visit http://www.marinefiends.com/submit.html.

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Upcoming Events
By Elizabeth M. Lukan 01/24/05

To Submit Your Event: Visit http://www.marinefiends.com/submit.html.

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